Cleansing-liquid-restoring means



Sept. 4, 1928.

1,682,939 M. M. SCHWAB ET AL CLEANSING LIQUID RESTORING MEANS Filed March. 5, 1927 A a ,7 '7 a gwumtoz' Mal/Lice c/iumb mad afamaeid d/iww Patented Sept. 4, 1928.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MAURICE M. SCI'IWAB AND SAMUEL S. SCHWAB, OF TOLEDO, OHIO.

CLEANSING-LIQUIDRESTORING MEANS.

Application filed. March 3, 1927.

Our invention has for its object to provide means for removing foreign material from a cleansing liquid for use in dry cleaning systems for clothing and fabrics of different kinds, wherein a cleansing liquid of any kind, which, however, is usually more volatile than water, and of the general type of liquids similar to gasoline, is used-for cleansing the clothes and is ordinarily a solvent for greases and some forms of dirt. The cleansing liquid becomes charged with the greases and with dirt, some of it in sobroughtabout between the caustic and the cleansing liquid and also opportunity is given for permitting the discharge of the precipitant and lodgment of the dirt from the cleansing liquid.

The invention may be utilized in continuous dry cleaning systems of different forms and to illustrate a practical application of the invention, we have selected as an example of structures containing the invention,

a pair of vats embodying the invention and wherein the cleansing liquid may be purified and its cleansing power or property substantially restored to its original condition before being again applied to the fabric.

The connected vats selected as an example shown in the accompanying drawing and their construction is described hereinafter.

The figure of the drawing illustrates a vertical section of a pair of connected vats for restoring the cleansing liquid of the dry cleaning system.

The dry cleaning system of which the vats illustrated form a part, is connected in the system by suitable pipes in the manner well known in the art. Certain of the pipes are for directing the cleansing liquid to the vats, for draining the vats, for maintaining a proper pressure and for preventing the pres sure within the vats from rising beyond a certain point. The cleansing liquid is caused to flow by means of certain pressure means,

Serial No. 172,263.

The cleansing liquid is directed into the caustic vat l by means of the pipe 2. The vat 1 has an inverted conical bottom 3 and the vat is supplied with a caustic solution,

wall 4, which may be formed of metal, is,

sealed along itsedges to the side wall'of the vat 1 and to its top and bottom so that liquids that are directed into the vat 1, through the pipe 2, will, in order to seek their level, pass through the opening 5 formed between the lower short edge of the partition 4 and-the apex of the cone 3. Except for drainage through the pipes 6 and 7, the outlet of the container 1 is through V the pipe 8 which is located on the side of the partitioning wall opposite to that on which the pipe 2 is located or connects with the vat 1. The caustic solution is first directed into the vat and filled therewith to the desired depth, preferably, as stated above, to about the base of the cone 3 and then the cleansing liquid is direcedinto the vat 1. The caustic solution has a specific gravity that is considerably greater thanthat of the cleansing liquid. The cleansing liquid does not readily penetrate the caustic solution and, consequently, the pressure to which the cleansing liquid is subjected to, will cause substantially all of the caustic solution to be forced into that portion of the container 1 located on the side of the partitioning wall 4 opposite to that to which the pipe 2 is connected. The cleansing liquid will pass up through the caustic solution of the other side of the partition 4. As the cleansing liquid reaches the opening 5 it, by reason of the semi-cone shape of the large portion of the caustic liquid, spreads as it rises through the caustic solution until it reaches the senii-cylindrical portion of the caustic solution as determined by the cylindrical walls of the vat 1 until it reaches the surface of the Vcaustiosolution. By this arrangement with a given'amount of caustic solution, the length of travel of the cleansing liquid through ,the caustic solution is nearly double that of the precipitating device that has heretofore beenused and yet at the same time the material in flotation is given opportunity ,to settle in advance of penetration of the liquid into the solution which locates a large proportion of the for eignrnatter at the bottom ofthe cone shaped container and in the apex of the cone, since the first precipitation that is produced by V the'ca ust ic solution is produced at the apex of the inverted cone.

A the l q id i e a d, distributes itself within the caustic SQlution, the precipitate settles to the cone. Thus a large part ofthe foreign matter is discharged before theliquid, passes out of the:

container 1 through the, pipe 8.

The liquid passes into the settling tank 9 to which the container 1 connected by the pipe 8. The settling tank has a diameter that is-very much smaller than that of the ".vat 1 although it has a, depth that is substantially the It is also provided with a partitioning wall 10 that extends from the topof the-tank 9 to near the bot- .tom of the tank. .The bottom of the tank is in the form of an inverted-cone 11.

lower end of the partition lOleaves a wide e 5 area of communication within the cone and The between the chambers onthe opposite sides of the partition 10. The liquid descends in :one of the chambers, moving slowly down.-

ward by reason of the fact that the cross sectional area of'each of the chambers of the tank 9 is much larger than the crosssection of the pipe 8, although it moves in the chambersv more rapidly than it moves in the chambers of the 1 The movement, however, is such as to carry idown any foreign material that may exist in the liquid after it leaves the vat 1, giving it sucha down- .ward movement that will cause the material to remain within the cone 11 and become deposited on t-he suriace of the 16 11. The

area between the lower ed-e of the parti- V tioning wall '10 being sufiiciently great as notto disturb the foreign material, substantially all of it, deposits in the apex of V the cone 11. The apex of the cone 11 forms a recess wherein th re is substantially no current and the current beneath the edge of the partition 10 is maximum at the edge of the partition and diminishes to nothing at a point somewhat remote from the apex which forms the space wherein the sediment will be deposited. Thecleansing liquid then rises and deposits the material as it passes upward through the chamber on the other side of the vpartition 10, until it finds exit through the pipe 12. Thus the foreign material contained in the liquid rempyed;

We claim: 7 In a cleansing-l quid restorin verted coneshaped; bottoms and partitioning al ext nd g. from h t ps o the rate of one of the vats extending well within the cone bottom and to near'the apex of the cone, the other Oif the partitioning walls ex? tending to near the bottom of the other vat,

means for causing the fluid to enter the top of the first vat, flow down through one Chamber and passfth-rough the small openingin the apex of. the cone of the bottom of the vat, then to rise and precipitate greases of the liquid ina caustic solution in the other amber of the firstvat and to pa ofi' i to the second vat, flowing downthrough one, chamber and passing slowly through the space between the lower edge of the parti tioning wall of the said theicone bottom of the vat to carry down the precip tated foreign material tothe bottom of precipitated" me ns pair of vats, each ofthe vats raving in;

towards the bottoms, ,the partitioning wall 9 the vat and-change the direction not flow of r the liqu d trom the downw rd movement of 

